Content management is an infrastructure to manage a wide spectrum of digital information. Large collections of scanned images, facsimiles, electronic office documents, Extensible Markup Language (XML) and Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) files, computer output, audio, video, multimedia, and virtual reality content can be stored and accessed through the content management system. The content management system integrates content with line of business, customer service, enterprise resource planning, digital asset management, distance learning, Web content management or other applications to accelerate benefits across the enterprise.
The content manager product may be visualized as a triangle. The three vertices of this triangle are the client, a library server and a resource manager. The client is the user interface, and provides the user with the capability of storing, searching for, and marking-up objects such as documents, files, etc. The library server is the equivalent of a card catalog that holds information about the objects, including their location. The resource manager (RM) is the storage location for either the actual object or a pointer to the actual object.
The core library server logic (except for system utilities and housekeeping tasks) is packaged as a set of relational database (RDB) stored procedures (SPs) containing embedded SQL statements. Each stored procedure (SP) is precompiled and runs on a relational database (RDB) server. Consequently, each Library Server (LS) process is a relational database (RDB) server process. Stored procedures (SPs) can be executed through the library server's SQL interface. The library server can be remotely accessed through a relational database (RDB) client.
The Resource Managers (RMs) may support different/multiple access protocols. The resource manager (RM) supports the HTTP protocol.
The basic information entities managed by the library server are “items.” As used herein, the “items” can be categorized in two types: simple items and resource items. Resource items can have content associated with them that is stored in one or more resource managers. Resource items point to their content via resource URL-RELATED DATA.
The library server (LS) and resource manager (RM) are separate processes, often running on different machines. In operation, clients first contact the library server (LS) to create/update an index for an object, and to determine where the object is to be stored/replaced. The client then sends a request to the resource manager (RM) to store/replace the object.
Attaching an item or document to an automated workflow process would enhance the convenience of a content management system and streamline the process of handling documents and other items. For example, a personnel employee creates a document “expense account” to reimburse expenses to an employee. The “expense account” document must wait until all receipts have been received before being reviewed by the appropriate manager. Once the receipts have been received, the document is reviewed to verify that all expenses are within company guidelines. If all the expenses are within guidelines, the document is routed to the appropriate manager for authorization and on to the appropriate employee for reimbursement. If the expenses are not within guidelines, the document is routed back to the employee for correction.
Currently, the process of routing an item is performed manually. The administrator can not automatically specify the process required for the newly created item. Rather, the desired process for the folder is communicated to each user. Relying on the end user to understand and apply the workflow process rules introduces situations where the wrong process is selected. The advantage of automating workflow process is the prevention of end user errors and uniform treatment of items within the process.
Thus, there is need for an automated workflow system and process for automatically and dynamically starting and maintaining the progress of an item such as a document or folder on a workflow process. The need for such system and method has heretofore remained unsatisfied.